Where the Sidewalk Ends discussion

This book is a collection of multiple poems about silly and strange things that elementary students would love to read aloud. It is full of imaginative ideas, such as Captain Hook remembering not to scratch his toes or pick his nose. Shel Silverstein uses rhythm and rhyme throughout this book that makes it easier for students to read independently and aloud.

I would incorporate “Where the Sidewalk Ends” into a third-grade classroom and use the ELAR TEK (12)(A): compose literary texts, including personal narratives and poetry, using genre characteristics and craft. First, I would ensure that all students are comfortable with writing and understanding rhyming words. Showing examples and identifying rhymes within poems would be the best exposure before the main activity. Next, I would have students think about their favorite thing, person, or even a dream or idea. Once they’ve had enough time to think, the students can write a rhyming poem. After the students have all written their poems, I would collect them and create a collaborative classroom book that contains all of the students’ poems.

I would grab “Where the Sidewalk Ends” and read aloud one poem to the students when students are waiting in line for the bathroom or in between classes. By reading poetry aloud to the students, they gain exposure to this type of writing style and will enjoy reading the silliness of Shel Silverstein’s poems. In the theatre TEKS for third-grade, (1)(C), it states that students will respond to sounds, music, images, language, and literature using movement. As I read aloud a poem, students will be encouraged to act out the poem through physical movements. This would also be great for English Learners, since poetry is tricky to understand. By using TPR (total physical response), not only will ELs understand more; but all students will create meaning by being actively involved and engaged in the reading.